12 Things Successful People Do on Their Commutes

You could squander time on Facebook, or you could take a tip from how these successful people think.

Can commuting be good for you?

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According to a 2012 study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, people with longer commutes had higher blood pressure, bigger waistlines, and were less fit than those who worked closer to home. Swedish research from the year before found that couples in which at least one partner commutes long distance are 40 percent more likely to separate than other twosomes. What to do? We turned to time-management guru Laura Vanderkam, author of What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast, and other experts for advice. (Watch out for these signs that your commute is making you sick.)

* This writer has a 120-minute commute each way. She is very grateful for e-books.

They set that day’s goals

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In a LinkedIn blog post, Thomas Oppong, author of Building Smarter Habits, notes that successful people begin with the end in mind—they know what they wish to accomplish. “Start your day by working on the projects that inspire you most and you will be more productive and achieve your goal faster whilst minimizing procrastination,” he says.